the abc of soundsystems – 'aving it * banging * clear

Well another year has gone and here we have it, Acidic 16th birthday bash with:

NICKY BLACKMARKET

Nicky Blackmarket is one of the original pioneers of drum and bass, and he is still the most faithful soldier for the scene around the world.

His early influences came from his mother’s background in the jazz scene, and it is improvisation and variety that characterise his DJ performances throughout his career.

At the start of the eighties, Nicky was 14 and playing electro at youth clubs in London. He played with long-time collaborator Clarky and began to mix all forms of dance music, at house parties and on the radio.

Friends FM, run by Mad B, gave Nicky a good education and the momentum to join the ranx of bm soho formally know as Blackmarket Records in 1990.. In 1992, as the house scene moved towards breakbeat, Nicky created a separate department downstairs to cater for the sound,and bringing ray keith in the store, that would eventually be called Drum and Bass

In the mid-nineties Nicky pushed the hardcore scene with a regular show on Pulse FM and performances at the Roller Express. He moved into production, making his first record “Spam EP”, along with various remixes and releases on his label Gyroscope, with artists like Ray Keith.

This exposure fuelled his DJ career and Nicky decided to put all his efforts into playing his music around the world.

“…first and foremost I am a DJ.”

As the jungle scene exploded Nicky formed his legendary partnership with the late Stevie Hyper D. These performances are still regarded as the standard by which all others are judged, and mp3s of those sets will probably be on the internet forever.

bm soho formally know as Blackmarket Records supported the scene as a focus for the community, an essential component in an world without the internet. Nicky started another label “Kartoonz” featuring the anthem “Two Degrees”, confirming his status as a central force in the scene.

Nicky stil is a promoter of fresh talent and ideas, unafraid to help new artists and organisers push the artform forward. His love of drum and bass keeps him from descending into the mindless repetition and lazy performances characteristic of many in the scene.

Nicky invites you to sample his philosophy at any of his shows around the world.

Dj, Producer, Label Owner, Broadcaster and original Jungle Pioneer, Dazee brings her wealth of experience plus a big charge of energy to the dancefloor. Her style is a bouncy mix of jungle rollers and steppers with a peppering of jump up and classic vibes : the sound that is becoming synonymous with her label, Ruffneck Ting records.

Dazee first took to the decks in 1992 and co- founded the original Ruffneck Ting club night with Markee Ledge (Kosheen) In 1993. She’s performed at celebrated events past and present (and featured in the tape packs!) including Universe, Dreamscape, Helter Skelter, Hysteria, World Dance, Fantazia, Slamming Vinyl, Innovation and Raveology. Her pioneering sound has taken her around the globe and she has featured on Radio 1, BBC 1Xtra, VH1 HTV and ITV.

Dazee’s productions and co-labs have seen successful releases over two decades on independent dnb labels Breakbeat Culture, Colourstone, Siren Records, Hocus Pocus and of course Ruffneck Ting. From “Damn Right” released in ’96 to 2016’s co-lab with Jinx, “Bring It Down” she continues to champion her distinctive sample-led and bass heavy sound. She stepped up to manage Ruffneck Ting Records after the relaunch in 2013 with the 1990’s classics album RNT20. Since then her own tracks and the works of the talented roster of producers now representing, including Jinx, K jahand The Force, have enabled the label to go from strength to strength. As well as a succession of EPs topping independent dnb download charts, 2016 saw the release of the huge 24 track concept co-lab album with accompanying vinyl and comic, “The Xtraordinary League Of Junglists”

No stranger to broadcasting throughout her career, Dazee began in the mid 90’s with shows on Bristols pirates, Ragga and Passion FM, alongside her then partner in crime, MC Jakes (Hench). This was soon followed by a weekly dnb chart mix on Galaxy 101 and several performances on BBC Radio 1’s One In The Jungle. In 1996 Dazee featured in “The Sounds Of The West” documentary alongside Roni Size and Krust and in 2001, HTV’s “The Session” that featured her dnb music project, Eden. In the mid 2000’s, Dazee performed and produced tracks with all-female collective Dutty Girl. As well as frequent gigs together in Bristol and beyond they released the “Call Of Dutty” mixtape featuring their own productions and mixed Genna G’s winning mixtape for 1xtra’s “Homegrown Challenge” . They also appeared on ITVs “Fixers” performing their track “Dark Places” and co-hosted a weekly show on Bristol’s award winning radio station Ujima 98 FM. Dazee is now busier than ever on the airwaves, hosting the fortnightly “Ruffneck Ting Takeover” on Ujima 98 FM, guesting regularly on London’s legendary Kool fm, and recently featured on Ray Keith’s popular Radar Radio Show. Archived Radio Shows On MixcloudDazee And Jakes On BBC Radio 1 “One In The Jungle” Nov 96

Dazee’s long time passion for her music is evident and she was nominated for best Female Jungle DJ In the We Love Jungle Awards 2015 and 2016. She currently enjoys residences for Ruffneck Ting in Bristol and Birmingham and Fantazia nationwide. Events such as Glastonbury, Love Saves The Day, Shambala, Run, Jungle Jam, West Fest, Wonkavision, Alternate plus recent gigs in USA, and Europe continue to take the Dj Dazee/Ruffneck Ting sound to a wider audience.

Looking to the future Dazee aims to continue to build the label’s profile and events as a platform for Ruffneck Ting artists to grow in the scene. With a solid release schedule ahead for Ruffneck Ting plus some very special events celebrating her 25 years in the business of junglism, Dj Dazee will be busier than ever repping the sound she loves in 2017 !

Dextrix AKA Tich has been a regular fixture in the UK’s nightlife and festival scene for over 10 years , playing and producing multi genre music. Dextrix has played most of the big clubs/stages and festivals from North to South , East to West holding residencies with many sound systems, labels and club nights. As a UK DMC Technics Turntablist finalist in 2006 Dextrix has been gathering enthusiastic audience responses and critical praise for energy fuelled, clinically executed D&B/Jungle/Breakcore sets over the years. Classically trained in making people dance, Dextrix brings his appreciation and deep understanding of music and Dj’ing to bring late night and early morning dance floors to life, taking listeners on a musical journey through the best of D&B/Jungle/old and new alike.

Matt Acidic, AKA Dj Acidic, first started mixing soon after attending an illegal rave in 1994. Being totally inspired by what he saw and heard, Matt was quickly hooked into the scene and purchased a pair of turntables to begin teaching himself how to mix on vinyl.

Matt’s career to date has been heavily influenced by the London Techno scene with Acid Techno being his favourite style to DJ, although he is well know across the dance scene for his mixing skills and some amazing sets consisting of Breaks, Psy Trance, Electro and House music.

Matt’s career started to take off in the year 2000 when he was given the opportunity to showcase his skills at Lunacy. Since then he has been booked by numerous clubs in the South West, London and Sheffield, and is well known for his unique ability to seamlessly blend one track into the next while never losing sight of the effect his mixing has with club goers. Consistently perfecting his technical skills and creating some fantastic sets with various effects sees him regularly whip the crowds up into a frenzy.

Following his success at Lunacy, Matt quickly gained a residency spot at Oblivious as well as securing regular sets at Acid Test, Homegrown, Species, Cyberdog, Beats Reality, Underground City, Tribe of Frog, Antiworld, Wonka Vision, Excessive and Shroom to name but a few! A massive highlight in Matt’s DJing career has to be performing on the Arcadia stage at the Glade festival in 2009.

In between mixing and music production DJ Acidic is also the founder and promoter of ACIDIC, Bristols leading bi-annual underground techno event which takes place at AREA 81, The Packhorse. It’s one of Bristols best kept secret venues run by the Hells Angels. The ACIDIC nights are legendary and are now running into their 16th year with the next event planned for April 2018 with a line up as fat as they come.

As if this doesn’t keep him busy enough, DJ Acidic is also the creative founder of The Rave Yard @ Boomtown Fair. The Rave Yard started as a micro venue with a 5K Sound system hidden away in the woods, but due to the popularity of the music that Matt is pushing and the DJs that he is booking, this is all set to change. 2018 will see a break from The Rave Yard at Boomtown festival. Matt plans on concentrating on Rave Yard Records and making some more tunes along with some more dj gigs!

When not performing, he spends his spare time in the studio creating his own music… Matt is also starting to collaborate with the other DJs and producers and we hope to see more tunes released in 2018 with the likes of Dynamic Intervention, Sterling Moss, Guy Geezer, Acid Ted. .….Matt has also started a label under the name of Rave Yard Records so what more is there to say other than watch this space….. Hope to see you on the dance floor!

I’ve been mixing vinyl since 1992, fucking around on a set of belt driven marantz decks in my mates bedroom… Started off mixing house and hardcore and spent an absolute fortune on records from 1991-1995. Djing whenever and wherever possible.. Got rid of all my kit and began mixing again in 2006. I’ve played regularly for BAD BASS in Bristol with the likes of Brockie, Dazee, Ramjack, Ray Kieth and other jungle legends.. I have a residency with Bristol Sounds Drum n Bass. I have also had the privilege to play on the Army truck at St Pauls carnival. My roots come from break beat hardcore, but I’m trying out making all sorts of genres of music as i’ve Dj’d everything over the years. have a listen guys and enjoy! I pride myself in still playing vinyl and adding to my fine collection! New event to add to my list – landed a set at BOOMTOWN on the RAVEYARD stage!!!! Awesome!!

DJ EEENS

DJing since 1997
Started off playing Acid Techno & Trance in the 90’s & went on to play Hard house , & Funky House in 2000 until I discovered Nu Skool Breaks & Electro Breaks , Played that for a few years but now I have rediscovered my love for dance music with Deep House , Bass House & Tech House. I also dip my toe into the world of DnB occasionally.

TROOPER

DJ Trooper is an electric force to be reckoned with. His broad musical expertise spanning three decades comes alive in his mixes, bringing the party vibes alive. Never failing to smash the techno and old skool, it’s rave time when Trooper’s in the house.

On to top all of this, Trooper has recently returned to the studio, writing tracks with DDR, Steve Mills and The Geezer. His tracks have been released on the legendary ‘Hazchem’ label, Abusive 303, Project 303 and Project 909 with more tracks ready to go. Keep your ear to the dance floor and listen out for Trooper’s unique energy and sounds.

Over the past 10 years, Trooper has gone from raver on the dance floor to playing on many sound systems including Freebase, E1S, Malfaiteurs, Manik, Storm, Hub, Krysis, Hackney Sounds and plays regularly on for Stinky Pink as a resident DJ storming the dance floor with his own take on Acid Techno, also enjoying pushing the speakers to the limits on various rigs at Frenchtek dropping the beats that captured his heart all those years ago. He played at illusive festival in 2015 dropping a back to the old Skool 92 set that had the whole arena bouncing and smiling hard.

But with Trooper’s personal history of dance music and broad musical knowledge, you can also hear him playing a broad spectrum of sounds such as Old Skool 91/92 Rave, Hardcore, Jungle, Drum & Bass, Progressive House, Acid House, Breakbeat and Electro.

Trooper’s journey with dance music began in 1991 when he was just 16 years of age and was taken out by some older mates to legendary raves such as Elevation, Dance 91, Raindance, Fantazia, Yikes and Interdance, as well as Spiral Tribal and Bedlam sound system parties on the underground free party scene.

The next year, he was introduced to mixing vinyl on the 1210’s by DJ SDR, owner of Shoebox Records. From that point, there was no turning back.

In 1994, Trooper started getting involved with the local music scene and began working at Ruffhouse Records in Slough, who ran Menace sound system.

Always up for a party, he was given the title nickname ‘Trooper’. He was always the last man standing, shortly establishing his turntable skills as ‘DJ Trooper’ on the underground party circuit, playing Jungle and Drum & Bass at parties in London and the South East.

Music House in Holloway Road, London, played a big part in Trooper’s life. Top Drum & Bass DJ’s went there regularly to cut their latest tracks onto dub plate fresh for the weekend raves. Trooper got involved distributing the ‘Ravescene’

UNDERGROUND GIRL

AKA Abegael Saward – Acid Techno, Breakbeat and Dubstep DJ at free parties in the south of the UK. Partner, with Arron Courts, at Space-Cat Audio Technologies, purveyors of unique circuit-bent and hand-built analogue instruments and effects. Producer as Strait-Jackit, also with Arron Courts.

Mark Archer started his Production career in 1988 when along with Dean Meredith, he ventured up to the newly opened Blue Chip Studio’s in his hometown of Stafford. Starting off as a hip hop/sample house group called Rhythm Mode D, they recorded a few tracks for the studio’s own label before branching out with different styles including acid house and techno amongst others. Archer was a founder member of Bizarre inc… before starting up a new project under the name Nexus 21 who had a string of releases on renowned labels such as Network and R&S Records (and were famously the first artists to receive a remix by the legendary Carl Craig on their ‘Still (Life Keeps Moving)’ single).

At the same time, Mark began a side project, which was to become one of the biggest names in rave history, Altern 8.
Altern 8 crashed the UK charts in 1991 with ‘Infiltrate 202’ and ‘Activ-8 (come with me)’, two chaotic slices of hardcore, the latter reaching number 3. They were aided in their chart aspirations by the circulation of fictitious press stories concerning their alleged activities, which included promoting the decongestant Vicks Vapo Rub, which, it was claimed, heightened the effects of Ecstasy; and standing as local candidates for the 1993 General Election.
Their live events were also designed as eye catching performances, where the band donned RAF chemical warfare suits and dust masks. They were aided by their resident dancers and MC MkOne, in the case of their gig at Stafford’s Bingley Hall, an actual shaman. His job was to cleanse the venue of its ‘rock n roll’, prior to performance.
Additional vinyl outings included the ‘Overload ep’ (1990), ‘Frequency’ (10,000 copies of which were on sale for a single day only and written solely by Archer), and another top ten hit, ’Evapor 8’, followed by ’Hypnotic St8’, the LP ‘Full on Mask Hysteria’ (number 10 in the LP charts).
The protagonists long maintained that this was a temporary diversion from their main project, Nexus 21, and confirmed this by releasing a ‘final’ Altern 8 single, ‘Everybody’, in June 1993.
Mark Archer has gone on to form Slo-Moshun, a duo of Archer and Danny Taurus from Stoke on Trent. They released ‘Bells of New York’, one of the biggest club hits of early 1994, breaking the main top 30 on the back of its house/hip hop undulations. However, some of the Altern 8 methodology remained – this time the scam was to trick everyone into thinking it was a US import.
Archer has gone on to record tracks as diverse as Nu Skool Breaks for Rennie Pilgrem’s label TCR, under the pseudonym ‘Mr Nex’, and remixed ‘Edzy’s’ – ‘Do it till you burn’ on Strictly Rhythm.
2007 was a return to the sound of Nexus 21 with the solo release of the ‘Songs for einna EP’ on the Black Dogs new label offshoot DS93, the ep sold out before it’s release date and has had collectors paying big money for the sought after vinyl only release.
The EP was followed earlier this year with the release on new label Mutate of the ‘Ring of Gyges EP’ which follows on from the DS93 release in style. contributions on Balkan Vinyl’s Coloured series and Rave Wars, along with a 2011 remake of his own “Frequency” and 2013 remake of ‘Armageddon’ tracks (originally credited to Altern 8) featured remixes by Killa Productions and Luke Vibert, KiNK, Dj Marky and a whole host of big name remixers.
Mark has continued to dj through his career in various styles but mainly on the ‘Oldskool’ scene playing classics from the golden era of ‘rave’ 1988-1992.

SI MCLEAN

Now vinyl’s cool again, come check the man who never realised it went out of fashion.

Si McLean started out DJing and running a club night in Bristol with Jamie Anderson and Jesse
Rose in the early 90’s. From breaking warehouses, squat &amp; free parties he later became co-
promoter and resident DJ at Bristol’s much-loved club night Species where he made his name
playing acid techno. Playing around the country at legendary nights like Sheffield’s Headcharge,
Leed’s Cabbage, Frantic and Escape from Samsara,
Si moved to Sheffield in 2005 and started experimenting with his sound, mixing heavier breaks,
bass and techno. Despite the change of scene, his continued to put nights on and over the
years with Future Funk, North N South and the mini-festival Camp Disco.
More recently, he’s been back in the studio with old friend Mobile Dogwash making acid under
the name Acid Kazuals.
When he steps up to the decks this summer, expect heavy breaks mashed up with old skool
jungle, techno and serious basslines.
Old Skool Party vibes!

MOBILE DOGWASH

Bringing you fat rolling acid techno from the north of the uk, Mobile Dogwash rocks the dance floor with his storming 303 driven sound.

It was 1997 when Mobile Dogwash starting producing acid techno in his hometown of Sheffield.

Not satisfied with the trappings of his studio, he soon earned himself a resident slot at the legendary Headcharge, the club responsible for playing the north’s most banging techno.

Mobile Dogwash honed his sound, his ears never far away from a speaker with London techno pouring from it. Six years after the project started, he collaborated with The Pranksterz, earning him his first release on Acid Test.

Not the lone star that some DJs tend to be, Mobile Dogwash has regular company in the studio in varying forms; Ron Atomizer (who was a part of and helped develop the sound of Mobile Dogwash in the earlier days), Dave Atomizer (Twisted Tyrants), Si McLean (Acid Kazuals), Pablo Sonic Terrorist (Orgy of Distortion), Benji303 (Conspiracy Realists), Fabulous 23s and OB1 (Wake n Bake), plus future collaborations planned with Steve Mills, Tassid and Tik Tok.

Recently he has been back in the studio with Dynamic Intervention (results out on Chase Yer Tail) and has been working this year with acid techno legend The Geezer (two tracks recently out on Wah Wah, with a third blinder in the bag headed for vinyl) and acid techno ubermeister Sterling Moss. Mark Eg has been to the Dogwash studio just last month & they banged out a 303 driven rifftastic cracker – this will feature on Mark & Chrissy’s forthcoming acid label, along with two other tracks written with Dave Atomizer & MK303. Watch out for remixes & original tracks on Benji303’s forthcoming label 303 Alliance, plus more releases produced with the usual suspects Ron, Dave & Si.

Mobile Dogwash rocks the dance floor with his rolling hard acid sound and plays regularly across the width and breadth of UK and abroad. Highlights of Mobile Dogwash’s last year include playing at Boomtown Festival (Acidic/Raveyard) and across the sea in Ireland (Transformer Sounds).

MATT ACIDIC

Matt Acidic is the creative mastermind of The Rave Yard stage at Boomtown Fair. The Rave Yard started life as a micro venue hidden in the woods, but due to the popularity of the music and DJs 2017 will see a much larger stage, & sound system return. Matt has worked really hard to bring the stage. That will show the years of rave from the early 90s when Matt got into the music we call Rave.

When not performing, Matt spends any spare time in the studio writing and producing tunes seeing the launch of Rave Yard Records in 2015 which has already gained huge success with several releases including one 4 track EP on vinyl and other digital downloads being mastered ready for release.

In between mixing and music production DJ Acidic is also the founder and promoter of ACIDIC, Bristol’s leading bi-annual underground techno event which takes place at AREA 81. The ACIDIC nights are legendary and will this year be celebrating 15 years of rocking the dance floor.

Matt’s musical style is heavily influenced by the London Techno scene with Acid Techno being his favourite style to DJ, although he’s well known across the dance scene for his mixing skills and can be found spinning tunes that encompass a variety of genres including Breaks, Psy Trance, Electro and House.

Matt’s DJ career took off in the early 00’s when he was first booked to DJ at Lunacy. Following this success Matt quickly gained a residency spot at Oblivious as well as securing regular DJ sets at numerous events across the U.K. A massive highlight to date in Matt’s career has to be performing on the amazing Arcadia stage at the Glade festival.

For all dj bookings please contact: Matt on email: matt@djacidic.co.uk For information on Acidic please contact:

matt@acidicsoundsystem.co.uk For information on the Rave Yard please contact: matt@theraveyard.co.uk